As we prepare for the new year and for new year’s resolutions, I thought we ought to re-post this article about a lady who truly fires me up! I know it’s dangerous to say it, but, ‘if she can do it …’

Ironman at 73!

From the article:

In 1982, Shapiro watched television as athlete Julie Moss crawled across the Ironman finish line in Hawaii. Like thousands of others, Shapiro was galvanized. Anybody can ride a bike, she figured. And she already knew how to swim.

“I’m going to do a triathlon,” she promised herself.

Since that day, Shapiro has won eight Ironman races in her age group, come in second three times in her age group in the world championships and won the half-Ironman world championships twice.

“My habits and my lifestyle and who I am are because of Ironman,” Shapiro told me, her taut frame atop a chrome chair with rainbow splashes on its cushions.

Along the way, she also suffered three serious crashes, one which required her being helicoptered to a hospital.

“You fall off the horse, you get back on,” she said.

“There are no short cuts to Ironman,” Shapiro explained. “Training is not easy. You have to have a passion.”

Some may think someone like Shapiro never has a bad day, always feels like cycling, running or swimming. Not so.

“Training is not easy,” she repeated.

If it sounds like Shapiro was talking about life, you would be correct.

“A sign of maturity is delayed gratification. It’s the essence of life.”

After missing some cutoff times in several Ironman races over the years, does she see another world championship in her future?